


Girl With The Tattoo

by drywitticisms



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Zombie Apocalypse, Bisexual Female Character of Color, Canon Het Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Miscommunication, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-29
Updated: 2016-12-29
Packaged: 2018-09-13 03:30:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9104734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drywitticisms/pseuds/drywitticisms
Summary: After being forced to attend a friend's party one night, Rick has an interesting conversation with a beautiful stranger that ends up changing his life.





	

He wasn’t even sure why he agreed to come in the first place.

Nursing a rather expensive glass of champagne in the corner, he found himself scoping out the room. He used to be a cop in his past life, so it was natural for him to canvass the room. The only thing keeping him here was the threat of his best friend’s wife; while unassuming, she could be downright terrifying when she wanted to be. Drinking the rest of his champagne all in one go, he gently placed the empty flute on the table behind him. 

He contemplated whether or not he should grab another glass of champagne; he did have to drive home, so he thought it best to leave the alcohol alone. He’d been stuck in his musings for the better part of an hour when he saw **her**. A dark-skinned beauty bathed in a shimmery, gold, slinky backless dress. His mouth fell open as he was gifted with a peek of a long, slender leg through the slit of her dress as she took a few steps away from her friend. 

He had definitely not seen her until now. 

There was no way in Hell he would miss the likes of someone like her, not even in a crowded room. 

His eyes followed up a shapely leg to a face that was home to full, pouty lips and a pair of large eyes. His heart raced as he stared into the face of the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen in his life. Granted, that may have been an exaggeration but he had never seen anyone like her before. 

He was no longer captivated as he watched as the locs on the dark-skinned beauty swung with her movements as she roughly jerked her arm out of the hand of a Blonde woman wearing a short, thigh length red dress. From the looks of it, the dark-skinned woman and the Blonde were having a quiet, heated argument. 

The beauty looked angry and the Blonde’s face was filled with desperation and sadness. The beauty said a few more words to the other woman before finally breaking free from her hold and stalking through the double doors leading to the balcony. As she turned away from her friend, he was graced with a peek of an intricate tattoo on her lower back; he couldn't quite make out what it was before she exited the room. He was suddenly intrigued by the woman with the tattoo. He watched as the Blonde woman looked wistfully at the double doors towards her long-gone companion before forcing her way through throngs of people. 

He was less concerned about the Blonde and more concerned with her friend. 

Before Rick knew what he was doing, his feet carried him towards the balcony. He was only a few steps away from the doors before he was stopped in his tracks by Maggie, his best friend’s wife. 

“And just where do you think you’re going, mister? You’re not leaving the party early, are you?” She questioned with a perfectly manicured eyebrow raised. “We had a deal.” 

“No, I wasn’t. I was just planning on getting another glass of champagne.” 

“That’s good, because I vaguely remember you losing a bet. I know you’re a man of your word, but I would hope you weren’t trying to get out of this without me knowing.” Maggie replied lightheartedly with a small smirk on her face. 

“Of course not, I wouldn’t do that to you.” Rick replied with a wide smile. 

Maggie nodded at his words before walking away from him and back to Glenn. He smiled at his friend’s ribbing before continuing on his journey to the balcony. He placed his hand on the door handle and hesitated. He never did things like this; he was never the kind of guy to approach beautiful women, but he felt compelled to do so this time. He didn’t know what it was about the mysterious beauty but he was willing to find out. 

He took a deep breath before turning the handle and stepping out into the cool, night air. It wasn’t unbearably cold, which he was thankful for because he didn’t think to bring his jacket. 

His eyes roved over the slightly bent figure of the mysterious beauty as she looked down over the city. She hadn’t turned around, but he knew she knew that he was there. He was frozen in place as he attempted to figure out how to start the conversation, but there was no need. 

“You know, sometimes I wonder why people make such a big fuss about the sun and light.” She replied evenly. “The sun is the sign of rebirth, sure. But the moon has its own thing too; without the moon, there is no balance. The moon is just as important as the sun; it’s such a shame that the darkness gets such a bad rap.” 

He didn’t know what to say to that but he watched captivated as she slowly turned around to face him. She had a small, knowing smirk on her face as she looked him over from head to toe. He was tempted to puff out his chest like a peacock under her gaze but thought better of it. 

“Well, Cowboy, aren’t you going to say something or are you just going to stand there all night and stare?” 

“I … Rick. My name is Rick.” He replied after a beat. 

“I like Cowboy better, so I’m just going to call you that.” She replied. 

“Your name!” He blurted out before he could think about it. “What’s your name?” 

“Michonne.” She replied before stepping towards him with an outstretched hand. 

He took her hand and firmly shook it before she let go. 

“Why, Cowboy?” He asked referring to his new nickname. 

“Because of those boots. I never see guys wear cowboy boots like that in the city, so I’m assuming you’re probably from a smaller town. I know Maggie isn’t from the city either, so it makes sense.” She explained. 

He looked down at his boots; while they were one of his newer pairs, he didn’t expect anyone to notice them. He looked up just in time to watch her glide towards the pair of chaise lounge chairs strategically placed on the spacious balcony. She elegantly took a seat on one of the chairs before crossing her legs and leaning back on elbows. 

He followed suit unsure of what to do as he gingerly took a seat next to the mysterious beauty. 

“I saw you watching me, Cowboy.” She replied as she beamed at him before looking out into the bustling nightlife below them. “I was wondering how long it would take you to come talk to me.” 

“I didn’t mean to stare. I just - you just caught my attention. There was something about you, especially since I saw what happened in there with your friend.” 

“Ahh, you saw that, did you? Relationship problems.” She replied before she dug into her matching gold clutch bag to grab her gloss. She reapplied the gloss to her full lips unaware of Rick’s surprise. 

He was stunned, to say the least. He knew things were much different here in the city than where he grew up, but he’d never met anyone who was out and proud of their sexuality before. He was more disappointed at the fact that he wouldn’t have a chance with her now. He felt like a creep now - lusting after the lesbian who is obviously not interested in him. 

“That was my ex-girlfriend, Andrea. She’s been cheating on me for the last four months with her boss.” Michonne bitterly replied before throwing her gloss back into her clutch. “I caught them a few weeks ago on my lunch break and I moved out the next day and haven’t seen her since. Until tonight, that is.” 

“She cornered me here at the party and begged me to hear her out, but I’m not as forgiving. You've been cheating on me for the last four months and you think I’m obligated to hear you out? Absolutely not.” 

Rick just listened to her vent as he could definitely empathize with what she was saying. It took him awhile, but he had finally gotten over his own wife’s infidelity. He’d been officially divorced for the last six months, but he hadn’t moved on to another relationship yet. He just never found the time to jump back into the dating scene yet, not that there was anyone that caught his eye anyway. 

“It just hurts, you know?” She replied in a childlike voice. 

“You’ll get through it. It’s still going to hurt but it won’t always feel that way.” He replied. 

“How would you know?” Michonne slyly replied. 

“I’ve been divorced for six months after I caught my wife cheating on me with my best friend.” He admitted. 

Michonne grimaced at his words, “Ouch! Well, you got me beat, Cowboy. How did you get over it?” 

“I had a strong support system; I had friends who cared enough about me to distract me. I buried myself in my work and I put all my energy into raising my son. One day I woke up, and it didn’t hurt as much. I'm not going to lie; it took a while for me to get here, but time really _does_ heal all wounds. Or most of them anyway.” 

“I hope I’m as tenacious as you are, Cowboy.” She replied. 

“I get the feeling you’re going to be just fine.” He said with a small smile as he caught her gaze. While she was a gorgeous woman, he couldn't help but be taken by her eyes. Those large, brown eyes framed with long lashes would be the death of him. 

She returned his smile before looking away from him. 

They began to talk about less heavy topics for the next two hours before they were interrupted by Maggie stepping out onto the balcony. 

“Hey guys! I’ve been looking for the both of you for the last hour. The party’s over.” The green-eyed brunette replied with a small smile. 

“Oh, sorry! We started talking and got carried away.” Michonne replied before standing to her feet. She shot a smile at Maggie while she brushed passed the shorter woman. She’d only taken a few steps into the high-rise before she stopped in her tracks. Slowly, she turned on her heel to look back at him. 

“It was nice meeting you, Cowboy. If we see each other again someday, I’d love to tell you a story about my tenacity.” She said with a wink before entering the deserted living room. 

He blushed at her words before looking down at his cowboy boots. He looked up and was met with a knowing smirk from Maggie. 

“It looks like you two hit it off.” She hinted with a small bump of her shoulder against his. 

“She just needed a perspective on her situation from an outsider; we enjoyed each other’s company,” Rick minimized. “That’s it.” 

“If you say so.” Maggie replied in a sing-song voice before opening the balcony doors wider to allow Rick entrance into the apartment. 

He couldn’t very well admit to his friend that he felt sparks shoot through his body and his heart race when he talked to her. No, he couldn’t exactly tell her **that**. As he plodded into the living room, he wondered if he would ever see Michonne again. Maybe she could tell him a story.

**Author's Note:**

> So, there it is.
> 
> Also, don't judge Rick too harshly for automatically assuming Michonne is a lesbian. He's a guy from a small town in the South; contrary to popular belief, there are still people in the real world who don't believe bisexuality exists or they just don't think about it at all. I'm like Rick in the sense that I, too, was born and raised in a small, backwoods town in Georgia. From my own personal experiences, most people here don't believe in nor have they heard about a lot of things having to do with the vastness and variety of sexual identity and gender expression. Unfortunately, It's just not a thing. That's the reality of living in small towns, people.
> 
> Rick's going to be educated really soon. I would never do that to him.


End file.
